Tag Archives: Mali

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey began a tour of four African nations on Monday in Algeria, where he met with Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia to discuss cooperation on counterterrorism, energy, and economic development and trade. It is Erdoğan’s second visit to Algeria since becoming president in 2014 and he…

The international community has pledged more than USD$500 million to support the regional G5 Sahel security force, the European Union said following a high-level conference hosted in Brussels Friday. The funding for the joint military force of the five nations – Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger – includes…

The United States announced Tuesday that it has assigned Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) status to the Ansarul Islam group, and will impose sanctions against members known to have committed terrorist acts or believed to be at a significant risk of doing so. “Ansarul Islam is a terrorist group based…

The European Commission, speaking ahead of a Friday conference on the Sahel, reiterated its support for the G5 nations and the regional security initiative launched this year. “The EU has fully supported this African led initiative from the very beginning and provided an initial contribution of €50 million to help set it…

President Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta of Mali canceled his trip to the African Union summit in Addis Ababa on Saturday, heading instead to the site of Thursday’s civilian bus bombing near Boni – even as news came that 14 Malian soldiers died when gunmen stormed their camp in a fresh attack…

American media outlets report conflicting stories about the death of a U.S. Army Green Beret in Mali believed to have been killed by U.S. Navy SEALS also assigned to a counterterrorism mission, and who shared the same embassy housing. Army Staff Sgt. Logan Melgar, a 34-year-old from the state of…

The United States pledged on Monday to provide $USD60 million in support for the G5 Sahel force, the joint effort of five African nations to work as regional partners on counterterrorism and security. “Defeating terrorism depends on making sure terrorist organizations cannot have safe havens on any continent,” said U.S….

Officials in the United States confirm that three U.S. service members killed Wednesday in Niger were members of a U.S. Army Special Forces unit involved in counterterrorism operations. “Two U.S. officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military operations, confirmed for The Washington Post that those involved were…

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Gutteres urged the international community to support the regional G5 Sahel Joint Force in northwest Africa, while warning that the window of opportunity for bringing stability to Mali was slowly narrowing. Guterres, speaking at a ministerial meeting at UN headquarters Wednesday, said delays in implementing…

The government of Chad announced Wednesday that it is closing the embassy of Qatar and giving 10 days for Qatari diplomats to leave the country. The letter issued by Minister of Foreign Affairs Hissein Brahim Taha said that Chad made the decision to expel Qatar’s diplomats because of the nation’s…

The Group of Five Sahel (G5 Sahel) Joint Force is expected to bolster existing efforts to combat terrorism in the region but requires international funding to succeed, said the United Nations head of peacekeeping operations during a UN Security Council briefing on Tuesday. Assistant-Secretary-General El-Ghassim Wane told the council that…

Russia’s TASS news agency reports that Moscow plans to sign a military cooperation deal with Niger, focused on international security and the war on terror. TASS, citing a government resolution published on Russia’s legal information website on Thursday, said the government would approve a draft agreement submitted by its Defense…

The story of summer in the World’s northern hemisphere is that it’s hot. Too hot. The current weather warnings continue for southeastern Europe, where temperatures reached 42.3 degrees Celsius in Croatia, and 42 degrees in Spain and Italy. For many Europeans, the heat wave hearkens memories of Europe’s 2003 heat…

South African Stephen McGown, captured by Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in Mali nearly six years ago, has been freed. “I’m pleased to say that my son is looking well and very healthy, and his mind seems as sharp as ever,” said his father, Malcolm McGown, during a…

In a shake-up with implications for the Sahel, the head of France’s armed forces has resigned following high-profile disagreements with President Emmanuel Macron over the country’s military budget. Pierre de Villiers submitted his resignation on Wednesday morning, in what RFI reports is an unprecedented move since the modern-era chief of…

Launched in July 2015, Africa Times is an independent participative online news site for Sub-Saharan Africa. We aim to empower all African voices through publishing content by a range of people, from academics to bloggers. We are dedicated to bringing the world an African view on life, up-to-date African news and analysis.